All public hospitals accept referrals from polyclinics

We apologise for not getting back to his mother sooner. The process of obtaining a referral appointment at public hospitals may take up to seven working days.

All public hospitals, including Tan Tock Seng Hospital, accept referrals from polyclinics and other health-care providers. When the waiting times for appointments are long, the referring institution would be informed to make alternative arrangements for patients.

In the case of Mr Pang's mother, the process took longer as Geylang Polyclinic was exploring other management options. We have since arranged an appointment for her to visit our specialised clinic in Geylang Polyclinic for further evaluation.

We will review our referral process and staff communication to patients.

Tan Thai Lian (Dr)

Head, Department of Geriatric Medicine

Tan Tock Seng Hospital

Jonathan Ting (Dr)

Clinic Director SingHealth Polyclinics - Geylang

This article was first published on Oct 15, 2014. Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.